On the evening of October 10

renowned journalist and author,

Nicholas Kristof graced a crowd

of about 350 students, profes-

sors, and community members at

BU’s Carver Hall with an en-

lightening, inspiring, and, at

many points, humorous lecture

on making a difference in the

world. This event marked the

launch of PCM’s Vocation Ex-

ploration Initiative, generously

funded by the Lilly Endowment,

Inc. and was a collaboration

with BU’s American Democracy

Project and the College of Liber-

al Arts.

Kristof shared several stories

that showcased the need for so-

cial change in order to improve

the lives of people living at risk,

PCM - THE WELCOMING PLACE

Protestant Campus Ministry

at Bloomsburg University

Fall 2016

Rev. Jill Young and

Amy Showers, Editors

What a joy it has been this se-

mester to journey with the stu-

dents in PCM’s first Vocation

Exploration Circle. These

small groups, offered as a 6-

week program each semester in

collaboration with BU’s Center

for Leadership and Engage-

ment, are a core component of

our Lilly Endowment funded

Vocation Exploration Initia-

tive. Drawing from resources

in the Christian tradition, the

circle curriculum provides stu-

dents with tools, insights, and

opportunities for self-

reflection, discernment, and

integration of values and life

plans.

During our sessions together

this semester the students cre-

ated collages that ex-

pressed their key dis-

cernment questions,

mined insights from

personality and spiritu-

al gifts tests they took,

listened for God’s

voice in Scripture

through Lectio Divina, expe-

rienced a mini-version of the

Quaker Clearness Committee,

tuned into to what their whole

selves had to say about their

life-purpose, and reflected

together on the connection

between their core values and

life plans. These students are

finding more clarity in their

callings and connecting that

more directly with their faith.

Colton, an Exercise Science ma-

jor, uncovered his desire to tack-

le the problem of child obesity

grounded in the call to love oth-

ers. He said about the circles, “It

has been enlightening to look

more in depth at my personality

type and my values. It has really

caused me to think about and

evaluate what is important to me

and where my strengths and

weaknesses lie.”

not just in our country but in

countries all over the world.

In his travels as a journalist,

he has seen the impact that

even the smallest amount of

money or resources can have

on the well-being and future

for people across the globe.

He provided insight into sev-

Nicholas Kristof: The biggest inequality is inequality of opportunity!

by Amy Showers, PCM Graduate Intern

eral “hot button” topics includ-

ing gender inequality; poverty;

racial, ethnic, and immigration

status discrimination; and educa-

tion. Kristof followed up insights

with action steps that we can

take as individuals and as a col-

lective society. He emphasized

our responsibility in checking

our biases so that we can bridge

the “empathy gap.” When we are

able to put ourselves in the shoes

of those living at risk of poverty,

discrimination, or other social

injustices, we will be able to

stand together and make a differ-

ence.

Kristof encouraged listeners to

remember that even “one drop in

the bucket at a time” will eventu-

ally fill that bucket!

What Makes PCM

Unique?

PCM is the only

program at Bloomsburg

University with an

ordained Protestant

minister on campus.

We work directly with

students as well as

other university

programs and

departments to offer a

pastoral and theological

point of view. PCM

supports the spiritual

needs of students,

faculty, and

staff at Bloomsburg

University.

But we need your help.

Please consider

making a donation

to PCM...and

keeping us in your

prayers!

Discovering Purpose Together in Vocation Exploration Circles by Rev. Jill Young, Protestant Campus Minister

At Parents & Family Weekend Worship Service

One of Protestant Campus Min-

istry’s biggest goals is to connect

to its students in a way that

grows their faith, develops their

character, and builds them up to

overcome the many challenges

of everyday college life. PCM

offers many opportunities for

this maturing to happen, two of

which are Main Event (our

weekly evening gathering) and

our Jesus & Java (our weekly

morning gathering).

The Main Event theme for this

semester has been applying the

lives of biblical characters to our

lives today. We look at the lives

they have lived, the challenges

they have overcome, and the

many ways they continue to hold

fast to their faith, and then dis-

cuss our lives on those premises.

We have studied characters in-

cluding Moses, Jonah, the Sa-

maritan Woman, and Paul.

In addition to our

Main Events held on

campus, we have

had the remarkable

opportunity to hold

Main Events at two

of our local churches

here in Bloomsburg.

St. Paul’s Episcopal

Church graciously invited us to

have a monthly Main Event

there that includes a worship

service and delicious catered

meal, thanks to a grant from

ECUSA. These liturgical wor-

ship experiences have helped

branch us into aspects of the

Christian faith that many of us

haven’t known or understood

before.

We also had the pleasure of at-

tending a Bible study at Open

Door Christian Fellowship.

There we plunged into a deep

study of the voice of God in the

Bible.

Another positive experience this

semester was a special joint

Main Event we had with Impact,

a Christian club on campus fo-

cused on minorities. It was a

spiritually encouraging time

connecting with our black broth-

Page 2

Protestant Campus Ministry at Bloomsburg University

Favorite PCM Traditions: Main Event and Jesus & Java by Darion Nomie, President

Has your church included Protestant Campus Ministry in its benevolence budget? Your congregation can give needed ongoing support to PCM by including it in their annual benevolence budget.

Please check with your mission committee about supporting our mission on the university campus!

PCM has been a

group in which I

feel accepted and

it has also allowed

me to grow

further in my faith

in a way that I

haven't done since

I was in Basic

Training.

Craig Bond, Freshman

ers and sisters in Christ!

Lastly, PCM continues the tradi-

tion of Jesus & Java, a time for

students to grab some coffee, sit

in fellowship, and discuss some

of the major current events go-

ing on in the world. Through

Jesus & Java, students connect

at an academic and spiritual lev-

el, debating the troubles of to-

day’s society in the light of

Scripture, and molding them-

selves into the leaders of

tomorrow.

Students gather for Jesus & Java at campus Starbucks.

Fishers of People! by Amber Srednicki, PCM Leader

PCM members hung a fishing

net between two trees on the

quad. The goal of this outreach

activity was to “catch” people

walking on campus, inspire them

to share positive thoughts, then

ask them to write on a paper fish

to hang in the net. Our fishing

net caught fish with inspiring

messages, Bible verses, and

prayers written on them. It was a

simple and non-confrontational

way to encourage people to think

positively about our campus and

community.

A joint “Main Event” with our brothers and sisters in Impact

Page 3

Volume 9, number 1

Don’t Worry, Just Worship! by Kayla Haskins, PCM leader Did you know... that Protestant Campus

Ministry is not funded by

Bloomsburg University?

Support for PCM comes from

local churches and some of

their governing bodies, from

parents, alumni, and

community members.

Bloomsburg University

generously has given us office

space and free use of meeting

rooms for our campus events,

but for everything else—

books, study materials, food,

equipment, transportation,

printing, and salaries—

we are dependent on you!

Protestant Campus Minis-

try is very blessed to be

able to participate in acts

of community service

within the Bloomsburg

community.

This September PCM stu-

dents assisted First Pres-

byterian Church in their

annual clothing drive for

the workers of the

Bloomsburg fair. The

clothes were sorted and

then later distributed to

the workers who spend a

large portion of their time

traveling along with the

fair and are unable to re-

ceive all the resources

they need.

During the distribution we

got to talk with the work-

ers and their families

about their experiences.

PCM also participated in

the monthly Mission Meal

provided to the communi-

ty by Good Shepherd

UMC. Pastor Jill and two

other PCM students led a

worship service prior to

the meal, which was

served by members of

Good Shepherd and the

students. The Mission

Meal is open to the whole

community and provides a

warm meal for those in

need.

This semester Protestant

Campus Ministry has been

involved in numerous wor-

ship events on and off cam-

pus, that have helped to

ground us in our faith and

connect with churches in

the community.

At the beginning of the semes-

ter, we held an Orientation Wor-

ship Service for the incoming

Freshman. We sang praise songs,

read Scripture, heard a reflection

from Pastor Jill, and participated in

a prayer activity, all centered on

the theme of inviting Jesus to calm

our storms.

In September we had the pleasure

of leading Sunday worship at

Buckhorn UMC and Good Shep-

herd UMC in the same morning.

Our student President Darion

preached to the congregations on

Luke 16. He described how diffi-

cult it can be as a Christian to serve

God and still be a human in this

world. There will be earthly temp-

tations, but we must always re-

member to keep our eyes fixed on

Jesus.

On October 23, Rev. Martin Harris

traveled from Philadelphia to

preach at our Parents and Family

Weekend Worship Service, led

jointly by PCM,

Church Visita-

tion, Impact,

and the CRU

praise band. In

his message,

Rev. Harris

posed an excellent question,

“Why do we worry?” referring

to the scripture in Matthew

6:24-34. In our everyday lives,

we get so caught up in the anx-

ieties about what’s next. We

need to remember to give our

worries to God; for God knows

what is best for us and his tim-

ing is never wrong.

Our most recent worship event

was on November 6th at Trini-

ty Reformed UCC. PCM stu-

dents assisted Pastor Steve

Hummel with prayers, Scrip-

ture readings, and the offering.

We were warmly welcomed by

the congregation who kindly

hosted a reception for us after-

ward. Pastor Hummel gave a

wonderful message about how

we get distracted from God’s

will by focusing on the materi-

alistic things of this age, rather

than focusing on the Kingdom

of Heaven.

If you prefer to “go paperless” and receive your news-

letter via email, you can send an email to

jyoung@bloomu.edu indicating your preference.

PCM Gives Back by Molly Peterson, PCM Leader

PCM students at Trinity Reformed UCC

Molly, Beth, Kayla, & Amber at Camp Krislund College Retreat in October.

Wed. evening worship service at St. Paul’s for our Main Event

SAVE THE DATE for PCM’s Dessert Reception

on February 17, 2017

Pray for PCM … For a diversity of stu-

dents to benefit from our

new vocation ministry.

For more BU students to

be awakened to their

spiritual hunger and find a

home in campus ministry.

For the spiritual growth

of our students in their

journey with Christ.

For BU faculty and staff.

For continued financial

provision for our ministry

at BU.

Protestant Campus Ministry (PCM) is a multi-denominational fellowship that offers members of the university community opportu-

nities for exploration and growth in the Christian faith. PCM is staffed by the Reverend Jill Young, an ordained minister in the Pres-

byterian Church (USA), and is also led by a group of students committed to their discipleship in Christ.

About PCM...

PCM - The Welcoming Place

Phone: 570-389-4950

E-mail: jyoung@bloomu.edu

Kehr Union Building 419

400 East Second Street

Bloomsburg, PA 17815

PCM is supported by:

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

The United Methodist Church

The Presbyterian Church (USA)

Local Churches

Parents & Alumni

People Like You!

For more information about how you can

support PCM, contact Pastor Jill Young:

570-389-4950, jyoung@bloomu.edu

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Visit our websites: http://bupcm.weebly.com, http://VocationExploration.org

Find us on Facebook: Bloomsburg University Protestant Campus Ministry

Sharing a meal and conversation at a Wednesday night Main Event.